NL West Notes: Padres, Rockies

Jeff Sanders of U-T San Diego offers five goals the Padres will need to achieve in order to make the playoffs in 2014. Improving on 2013's 1,309 total strikeouts — good for 12th in the NL — headlines the list. Full seasons from Everth Cabrera and Carlos Quentin would also give San Diego a boost, Sanders writes.

Padres farmhand Cody Decker has received a Major League Spring Training invite, Chris Cotillo of MLB Daily Dish tweets. The 26-year-old is primarily a first baseman. While Decker has yet to appear in a big league game, he's hit .269/.353/.534 across five minor-league seasons for San Diego.

The Rockies will continue to be handicapped by their TV contract, Troy Renck of The Denver Post writes (via Sulia). As MLBTR's Jeff Todd noted this afternoon, the Phillies stand to earn an average of $100MM annually with their new TV deal. Meanwhile, the Rockies' current contract doesn't expire until 2020.

No one knows the details of their TV deal but according to Forbes the extension starts after 2014 season through 2020 is expected to double their cable TV revenue.

Given the original deal was at least 20 million a year (10/200) that should bump them up to at least 40 million. The Phillies are only getting 35 million through 2015 and in 2016 the new deal starts off at 65 million.

I don’t think the Rockies are as poor as they claim relative to other teams and they do have 54 million in national TV money to spend (and lets face it, the national TV guys are not paying to show Rockies games)..